The Game of The Captive: Secrets of the Dreamers
by ldb13
Summary: High school socialites who want nothing more than to finish high school and get out of their small town, but when problems start to happen, can they bind together and show the power of true friendship means the most? - Not good at summaries, so just read!


Fear. Apprehension. Excitement. Sadness. A wave of roller coaster emotions rumbled through my head and my stomach as I drove to the start of my last year of high school. I was uncertain and fearful, mainly because I was always alone at school. It seemed like the school system in the town in which I lived, Trinity Capes, South Carolina, always believed in separating me from my friends.

This semester was the first semester I had a more independent schedule. I was off campus first block and fourth block, because I was dual enrolled at the local college and an intern with Sgt. Wilson and Major Garcia in ROTC. However, I still had two blocks and lunch at the high school. I was fearful that I would always be alone in class and be the freak sitting alone at lunch.

As I pulled into the high school that morning to get my schedule from my home room teacher, I heard a loud honk from behind me, noticing one of my best friends; Richard Frank Lee, known to everyone at Trinity Capes High School as either Ricky or The Legend, driving his bright orange Lamborghini into the student parking lot right behind me. I grinned to myself. I also noticed, at that point, my friend Caroline Marie Scott, known as Cara driving her hot pink Mini Coupe in right in front of me. I was thankful that I wouldn't have to walk into the school alone. That was always one of my biggest issues.

I hopped out of my car enthusiastically when I saw that Cara and I parked next to each other.

"Ooo, looks like the summer was good to some of us." I heard the country twang of none other than Shane Polk as he got out of his red Mustang parked behind me.

"Looks like it was good to you to honey." I said winking at him as he walked towards me. Shane was one of my closest friends from ROTC, and we would always goof off like that.

As Shane walked towards the school, Ricky's orange Lamborghini pulled into the parking lot on the other side of my red Ford Focus.

"RICKYYYYYYY!" I yelled loudly to get his attention.

"Damn girl, you act like I didn't see you yesterday." Ricky said as he walked over to me.

"You know I got to keep the appearances up!" I said, laughing all the while. "Girlfriend alert!" I said in my robotic voice to alert that another one of my best friends and Ricky's girlfriend, Nicole Wilkinson had walked up behind him.

I turned to see if Cara was still in her car, but she had left it and was cozied up to my friend Michael Germane I had set her up with just a few weeks before.

Since all my friends were cozied with their significant others and I was forever alone, I walked into the ROTC room alone. I tossed my oversized blue backpack on a side table, and retrieved my hairbrush out of my Michael Kors purse. I looked at my reflection in the mirror.

My blonde hair was straight down and my bangs were French braided across the top of my forehead. The new makeup I had recently gotten highlighted my green eyes and hid my facial secret. I had gotten a yellow high-low dress with a hot pink belt especially for the first day of school and wore my favorite pair of brown sandal Jimmy Choo wedges.

After I stopped fixing my hair in the mirror, I put my hairbrush away and as I looked up at the door and saw a guy walk in the classroom I had never seen before. He was tall, over six foot easily. His chocolate brown hair was spiked up in the back, and his bangs swished across his forehead. He had piercing, emerald green eyes that could see all the way to the soul. He had a white graphic T on, a lot like one my brother had with a surfboard and little blonde boy on it; a dark denim vest with a grey hood; a pair of black skinny jeans; and a pair of red converse.

I don't want to sound cheesy but when I saw him, it was like the aging blue carpet and the quienisentially white school walls disappeared. It was as if the world had fallen out from under us, and we were flying. Just me and him, alone. As I would reach out to grab his outstretched hand, I would be further away from him. The distance would be greater and greater until he disappeared from my view.

I was rudely jarred back into reality as my daydream had gone bad by a muscly, tan hand. It was none other than Austin Richardson.

Austin was the son of my father's law firm partner and best friend, Bart Richardson. Austin was that guy. All school's have one- that super perfect, super hot guy every girl wanted who of course dated the most popular girl in the school.

"Hey sleepy head, I thought you were coming by the house this morning. You know how our moms are." He said in his sleepy, dreamy, and just a tad country voice. His mother, Barbra Richardson, and my mother, Priscilla Balducci were convinced that one day we would get married, and they wanted pictures of us together at every important event- first day of school, homecoming, spirit week, prom, baseball games, drill meets, Military Ball, and all those high society parties that we were always invited to.

I dug through my purse, and found my mother's digital camera she had given to me to get a picture of Austin and me today. I looked up at Austin. He was so dreamy. His brown locks were curly and swishy, as if the wind had blown it into perfect place. His green eyes were the exact same green soul defying color as the mystery rocker boy at the classroom door, who had since disappeared. His body was chiseled and muscular, because of the conditioning he did for baseball. He had a little bit of scruff on his face, just enough to make him look ten times hotter. Today he was wearing a yellow long sleeve Polo button up with a pair of khaki shorts and leather moccasins.

"Look at us Ar, we match!" He said, looking at my outfit and pointing at his.

"Ar? Really? I'm now a movie for people seventeen and older." I laughed as I looked at him again. My real name was Arianna Natalia Balducci, but everyone called me Aria.

"What can I say? Just being unique." He said as he smiled at me. I melted to the ground and didn't think I was going to be able to move. Austin and I had always been friends, but we really only spoke in passing, because our friends didn't care for one another, and our extracurricular activities put us into two totally different cliques- me in the ROTC clique, and him with the sports playing hotties. This was a different side of Austin, but I would rather not question it. I enjoyed him flirting with me, and being all sweet.

After we had taken our pictures, the bell rang.

"Gotta run and catch my lady so I don't get in trouble! See you later!" Austin said as he grabbed his backpack and gave me an awkward one arm squeeze.

Outside the door awaiting me were my best friends, Cara Scott, Ricky Lee, Nicole Wilkinson, Michael Germane, Alice Tucker, and Matt Phillips. I was essentially the seventh wheel, the only 'forever alone' person in our group. They welcomed me anyways as I squeezed in between Ricky and Matt.

"Since when do you and A Rich talk?" Matt said, putting his free arm around my shoulder and speaking in a hushed voice.

"Since we could talk, I guess. You know that daddy works with his dad and they're like best friends and we go on vacation with them all the time. Besides, it's not what you think. He dates Christina Alexander."

"Oh, so you're slutting it up, sneaking around behind her back? Way to go." Ricky said as he locked arms with my free arm.

"Oh, definitely. You know me!" I said, causing the whole group to laugh.

As we reached our homeroom classes, the group slowly started to shrink. Finally, I reached my new homeroom class. Our homeroom teacher had retired at the end of the last school year, and today we were starting fresh with a new teacher at the end of our high school career. Michael and I branched off from the group and walked in the door and joined one of my ROTC friends Suzie Campbell in the back of the room.

"Hey, Aria, does that teacher look familiar or am I crazy?" Michael said in his deep country tone from living in Texas for fifteen years.

"Oh my god... That's Miguel." I said, hiding my face behind Suzie. Miguel was a migrant worker who, along with his sister Rosa, cleaned our house every other weekend. I was mortified, embarrassed, and wanted to leave before he saw me.

"It's too late for that girl. He knows you're in here." Suzy turned around and said.

I did not like Miguel, and he knew it. Miguel had once stole- or rather attempted to steal, my purse. One of my best friends, Matt Phillips was walking into my house as Miguel tried to leave with my purse, and when Matt caught him, there was an altercation and before I knew anything about it, Miguel had a bloody nose and Matt had my purse. I never told my parents about this incident, because I knew that they would go bizerk, and I felt bad for him anyways.

The thirty minute class drug by crazy slow, and I finally was able to leave the room.

"I gotta say, that was more awkward than ballroom dancing with Craig Richardson at the mayoral ball." I said to Michael and Suzy as we walked out.

Again, I saw the mystery man. Suzy's boyfriend, Seth Wilkinson, the sophomore brother of my best friend Nicole Wilkinson was leaning against a wall near our classroom, waiting for her. Standing with him was the mystery boy from that morning.

"Put your tongue in your mouth and be a good girl." Michael said, placing his hand on my back.

I laughed as Michael walked away. "Hey, Aria, are you going to the ROTC room first block, since you don't have college today?" Seth said, looking hopefully at me as Suzy walked the other way, and his hot friend stayed put.

"Of course I am. I don't have enough time to go all the way home." I said to Seth. Even though Seth was my best friend's baby brother, I thought he had grown into a handsome guy. His black hair had grown out considerably over the summer, but it was still shorter than most guys, and he spiked his bangs up to make himself look badass like his friend. He had crystal blue eyes, just like his sister. He had on a red v-neck t-shirt and khaki shorts with grey slip on vans and his ridiculous collection of rubber and string bracelets around his wrist, hiding the black sideways cross tattoo on his wrist.

"Good. Because I kinda forgot how to get there." Seth said, laughing.

"What about you, quiet boy? You know where you're going?" I said, looking at the mystery hottie.

"Yeah, my brother is a senior, so I pretty much know my way around this place. I'm surprised you don't remember me Aria."

I looked at him in shock. Mystery hottie knew me. "I'm sorry? I really don't know who you are."

"It's me. Little Tommy boy. Ricky's brother."


End file.
